Decoupling device and method for the production of an electric motor

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a device for mounting an electric motor ( 10 ) in a manner that isolates vibrations, in particular a fan motor, wherein the electric motor ( 10 ) features at least one pole housing ( 12, 14 ) serving as a magnetic yoke circuit, as well as means ( 26, 27 ) for fastening isolating elements ( 32, 33 ), in particular elastic isolating elements. In accordance with the invention it is proposed that the means ( 26, 27 ) for fastening the isolating elements ( 32, 33 ) are embodied to be a single piece with the pole housing ( 12, 14 ).

RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/559,417, filed Dec. 7, 2005, the entirecontents of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention starts with a device for mounting an electric motor in amanner that isolates vibrations.

Electric motors, such as those that are used in fans of heating and/orair conditioning systems in motor vehicles, are as a rule vibrationallyisolated vis-à-vis the vehicle in order to avoid or reduce thetransmission of structure-borne noise from the motor or the fan unit tothe body and thus to the passenger compartment of the vehicle.

Running noise from the electric motor and run-induced vibrations thatare generated, e.g., by an imbalance in a fan wheel that must be driven,are transmitted as a result to a high degree to the housing and lead tothe undesirable development of noise.

Common fastening methods for these types of motors consist of insertingthe complete motor in a plastic housing or a housing made of metal,which is provided with a flange for connection to the air conditioner.Normally, rubber or correspondingly formed rubber elements are insertedbetween the motor and the motor housing or in the flange in order todampen the stimulation of vibrations of the air conditioner or the bodyand to suppress noises in the passenger compartment of the vehicle thatare annoying to the driver or his passengers.

In the case of elastic isolating elements, which, on the one hand holdthe electric motor on support areas and, on the other hand, are supposedto provide dampening, these opposing requirements lead to the isolatingelement being pre-tensioned for example. Since the dampening of thevibrations therefore occurs via flexing work in the isolating elements,no optimal isolation is possible.

During operation of the electric motor, tangential torsional vibrationsas well as vibrations in the radial and axial direction, among otherthings, are generated in the main direction of stimulation of vibrationsof the motor. For isolation between the motor and a receptacle housingfor the motor, which is supposed to simultaneously serve as an isolatinghousing, this means that the isolation in the tangential direction mustbe particularly soft, but clearly more rigid in the axial direction orradial direction.

There are currently several variations in practical use of arranging theisolating elements between the housing flange or between the motor andthe motor housing in order to achieve vibrational isolation of theelectric motor vis-à-vis the motor housing and as a result vis-à-vis thebody.

Thus, for example DE 43 34 124 A1 discloses a device to accommodate anelectric motor, which achieves an effect that is particularly low invibrations and therefore noise dampening, in that at least one elasticdampening element is arranged between the inner walls of this receptacledevice and the outer walls of the motor housing that face these, and thedampening element is supported on the facing walls of the receptacledevice and the motor housing.

The elastic dampening elements, which are correspondingly formed rubberelements in a preferred embodiment of the device in DE 43 34 124 A1,means increased assembly and material expenses, which unnecessarilyincreases the costs of such a device.

Using elastic balls, made preferably of an elastomer, is known from EP 0682 396 A2 in order to isolate two components from one another. In doingso, the balls are each accommodated in an ellipsoidal cavity so that acertain degree of free rotational movement is made possible for theballs. Each of the components has these types of cavities, which areattached in such a way that the cavities of both components lie oppositefrom one another in a built-in state.

Typically the electric motor is put in an adapter housing on whichcorresponding holding means are provided to accommodate the isolationbodies. The unit made of up electric motor, adapter and isolation meansis then inserted into a motor housing or another functional housing.

An isolating device for actuators, such as electric motors for example,is known from DE 199 42 840 A1, in which a single-piece or multi-pieceisolation housing is connected with a functional housing in such a waythat a plurality of isolating elements arranged in pairs between thehousings is arranged and respectively fixed by a holding element,whereby the actuator acts on the holding elements.

Disadvantageous in the case of the arrangement in accordance with DE 19942 840 A1 is the expensive construction, which because of the numerouscomponents requires clearly increased assembly expenditures and thusalso cost expenditures for isolating the vibrations of an electricmotor.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In contrast, the device in accordance with the invention for mounting anelectric motor in a manner that isolates vibrations has the advantagethat means for fastening isolating elements can be embodied in a simplemanner. The fact that the means for fastening the isolating elements areembodied to be a single piece with the pole housing of the electricmotor eliminates the necessity of putting the electric motor in anadditional adapter housing, which can then in turn be isolatedvibrationally vis-à-vis a receptacle housing.

The holding means for the isolating means that isolate the vibrationsare formed in an advantageous manner directly from the pole ringmaterial. As a result, it is possible already during manufacture of thepole housing to make sure that corresponding orientation brackets areplaced in the steel sheet strips forming the subsequent pole housing.After cutting to size and subsequent rolling of the pole housing as wellas closing the joint seam, the pole housing can be processed furtherwith the applied holding means during assembly of the motor.

If the motor is built into a complete fan module for example, then theholding means for the isolating elements can be oriented afterward witha tool and corresponding isolating elements can be attached to theseholding means. In this manner, it is possible to isolate the motorvis-à-vis the motor housing or the receptacle housing and achieveoptimized, i.e. reduced, noise behavior of a fan, for example. Theadapter to accommodate the electric motor that was required to a largeextent until now is completely eliminated in an advantageous manner.

If it is not necessary to isolate the motor vis-à-vis a motor housing ora receptacle housing, the motor can be installed and operated withoutisolating elements and with applied holding means.

The device in accordance with the invention for mounting an electricmotor in a manner that isolates vibrations thus renders possible a clearreduction in the number of components and as a result leads tosimplified assembly of the motor system.

Advantageous embodiments of the device in accordance with the inventionare yielded from the characteristics and developments listed in thesub-claims.

In an advantageous embodiment of the device in accordance with theinvention, the pole housing is formed as a double rolled, i.e.,double-layer, cylinder. In this way, it is possible to embody theholding elements on the outer layer of the cylinder and merely providean opening in the inner layer of the cylinder to orient the holdingmeans for the isolating elements using a corresponding tool. As a resultof this type of double rolled pole housing, it is possible, despite thedefective spots in the surface of the pole housing, to influence themagnetic flow only to a small degree so that the pole housing retains itfull functionality as a yoke ring.

In alternative embodiment it is also possible, however, to embody thepole housing as only a single layer and embody the holding elements forthe isolating bodies out of the housing wall of the pole housing. Thereduction in the magnetic flow produced by the defective spots in thepole housing serving as a magnetic yoke ring must be accepted in thiscase. The device in accordance with the invention is constructedextremely simply in this embodiment.

The means to fasten the isolating elements are advantageously embodiedin the form of holding brackets, which are connected as a single piecewith the pole housing, developed from it and oriented vis-à-vis thesurface of the pole housing.

In doing so, the holding brackets are essentially oriented in the radialdirection so that the motor isolating elements fastened to the holdingbrackets end up lying horizontally when the electric motor is installedbetween the pole housing surface and the inside of a motor housingaccommodating the motor.

In order to achieve the best possible fastening of the isolatingelements, provisions can be made to arrange the means to fasten theisolating elements (holding brackets) in pairs. In particular, theholding brackets can be arranged axial to the pole housing in this caseso that, e.g., roll-shaped isolating elements can be fastened at twolocations.

In another embodiment of the device in accordance with the invention,provisions can be made to orient the holding brackets essentiallytangential to the pole housing. The isolating elements that arepreferably embodied in the form of roll bodies can then, e.g., beassigned in pairs to such a tangentially oriented holding bracket. Inorder to make simple and quick mounting of the isolating elements on theholding means possible, it can advantageously be provided that theisolating elements be connected to one another in pairs. At the sametime, the connection of the isolating elements advantageously serves toconnect the isolating elements with the holding means of the polehousing.

With the method in accordance with the invention to manufacture anelectric motor, it is possible in a simple manner to provide means,which, if necessary, make it possible to fasten elastic isolatingelements on the pole housing of an electric motor and thereby integratethe electric motor in a motor receptacle, e.g., a fan housing, in amanner that isolates vibrations. The pole housing is preferably doublerolled in order to lose as little as possible of the magnetic flow viathe orientation of the holding means. This type of double rolled polehousing is composed originally of two steel sheet strips, which arefirst cut to size, e.g., punched, before the “rolling” work step. Duringthis work step, the provided holding means can also already be putadvantageously on the sheet of the outer ring at the same time and, ifneed be, an assigned elongated hole can be put in the correspondinglocation of the inner ring. This elongated hole on the inner ringenables subsequent placement of an orientation tool, which can be usedto orient the holding means in a radial direction from the pole housing.

After cutting the steel sheet strips of the pole housing to size, thefurther course of manufacturing the pole housing takes place in a knownmanner, i.e., rolling of the sheets into a cylinder as well as closingthe joint seam. The pole housing that is manufactured in this manner canthen be further processed with the still applied holding means duringmotor assembly. If such a motor is e.g., installed in a complete fanmodule, the holding means can be oriented afterward with a correspondingtool and isolating elements can be attached to the holding means. Theseisolating elements then make sure that the electric motor can bearranged in the fan module or a motor housing in a manner that isolatesvibrations.

A correspondingly prepared motor, in which the holding means are notoriented, however, can also be advantageously supplied to a customer asa separate final product, who can orient the holding means in accordancewith his desired intended use, or else use the electric motor withoutthe use of the holding means in accordance with the invention.

Additional advantages of the device in accordance with the invention formounting an electric motor in a manner that isolates vibrations arepresented in the following drawings as well as in the associateddescription of the exemplary embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Exemplary embodiments of the device in accordance with the invention formounting an electric motor in a manner that isolates vibrations aredepicted in the drawings, which will be explained in greater detail inthe following description. The figures of drawings, the descriptionthereof as well as the claims contain numerous features in combination.The person skilled in the art will also observe these featuresindividually and combine them into additional, meaningful combinations,which are therefore also disclosed in the description.

The drawings show:

FIG. 1A schematic depiction of an electric motor with a device inaccordance with the invention.

FIG. 2 A longitudinal section (2 a) through an electric motor that isinserted into a motor housing, with the device in accordance with theinvention as well as detailed view (2 b) of the area of the holdingmeans in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 3 A first alternative exemplary embodiment for the arrangement ofthe isolating elements in an overview (3 a) and in a detailedrepresentation (3 b).

FIG. 4 A second alternative exemplary embodiment for the arrangement ofthe isolating elements in an overview (4 a) and in a detailedrepresentation (4 b).

FIG. 5 A perspective representation of a pole housing of an electricmotor in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 6 A simplified perspective representation of the pole housing of anelectric motor in accordance the invention as per FIG. 5 in a statewhere the holding means are not yet oriented.

FIG. 7 A simplified perspective representation of another exemplaryembodiment of a pole housing of an electric motor in accordance with theinvention.

FIG. 8 A schematic representation of the pole housing of an electricmotor in accordance with the invention as per FIG. 7 with mountedisolating elements.

FIG. 9 A longitudinal section of an alternative exemplary embodiment ofa pole housing in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 10 A longitudinal section of an exemplary embodiment for isolatingelements.

FIG. 11 A longitudinal section of an alternative exemplary embodimentfor isolating elements.

FIG. 12 A longitudinal section of an alternative exemplary embodimentfor isolating elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 1 shows an electric motor like those used in an air conditioningfan of a motor vehicle for example.

The electric motor 10 features a double-layer pole ring 14 that servesas a pole housing 12, on whose inner circumferential surface magnets areattached in a known manner, which serve as the stator of the electricmachine 10. The pole ring 14 in this case serves as a magnetic yokecircuit of the electric motor 10. Also fastened to the pole ring 14 is afirst shaft-side end shield 16 as well as a second armature-side endshield 18.

The first end shield 16 and the second end shield 18 each feature abearing 20 or 22 into which the shaft 24 that has a working connectionwith the rotor of the electric motor 10 is guided.

The pole housing of the electric motor in accordance with FIG. 1 iscomprised of a double-layer cylindrical pole ring 14, which ismanufactured by rolling and subsequent joining of two correspondinglyformed steel sheet strips.

The outer layer of the pole ring 14 features a plurality ofbracket-shaped holding elements 26, which are formed as a single piecewith the outer layer of the pole ring and uniformly distributed over thecircumference of the pole housing. At least three such holding elementsare arranged in an advantageous manner, preferably in a planeperpendicular to the axis of the pole housing. Other numbers of holdingmeans and/or other orientations of said holding means can be used inother exemplary embodiments

The pole housing 12 is comprised originally of two steel sheet strips 28or 30, which in the course of the manufacturing process are first cut tosize and formed, e.g., using a punching process, before the “rolling”work step. In this work step, the provided holding elements 26 are puton the steel sheet strip 30 in the form of orientation brackets, andthis steel sheet strip will later form the outer layer of the polehousing 12. In a corresponding manner, a hole, preferably an elongatedhole, will be put in the steel sheet strip 28 that will later form theinner layer of the pole ring. The elongated hole on the inner ring 28enables subsequent placement of an orientation tool for orienting thebracket-shaped holding element 26. After forming the steel sheet strip28 or 30, the normal further manufacturing sequence of the pole housing12 of the electric motor takes place. The steel sheets 28 or 30 arerolled, the seam is closed and the pole housing is calibrated.

The pole housing 12 can then be further processed with the still appliedholding means 26 during motor assembly or handed over to an end user. Ifthe electric motor 10 is installed in a complete motor housing, e.g., afan module, the holding means 26 are oriented afterward with acorresponding tool and isolating elements 32 are fastened to the holdingelements.

The holding elements 26 of the electric motor 10 in accordance with theexemplary embodiment in FIG. 1 each feature an indentation 34 into whichthe isolating elements 32 can be inserted. At least three holdingelements 26 are advantageously distributed uniformly on the surface ofthe pole housing 12.

The single-piece isolating elements 32 in the exemplary embodiment inaccordance with FIG. 1 essentially have a dumbbell-like shape,consisting of two elastic spherical elements 36 and 38, which arepermanently connected to each other with a rectangular parallelepipedalconnection having a smaller cross section 40. Other cross sections ofthe connecting bridge 40 are also possible, of course. The connectingelement or the connecting bridge 40 between the two spherical elements36 and 38 of the isolating elements 32 is respectively inserted in theindentation 34 of the holding element 26 and clamped in it for example.The isolating elements 32 are typically comprised of an elasticmaterial, e.g., an elastomer. In addition, the dumbbell-like shape ofthe isolating elements 32 also serves the simple mountability of theisolating elements.

The release of torque by the electric motor 10 results in a rollingmovement of the isolating elements 36 and 38 that are embodied as balls.In the process, the isolating elements are compressed elastically andgenerate a restoring force as a result of the elastic deformation. Inthis way, it is possible to dampen the vibrations of the electric motor10 so that these vibrations are not passed on to the motor housing 42 orthe fastening flange 44 at all or only in a clearly reduced manner.

In doing so, the necessity for an additional, vibrationally isolatingmounting to accommodate the motor is eliminated in an advantageousmanner. In doing so, it is possible to embody the holding elements thatproject radially from the pole housing without an essential low ofelectrical flow.

Several exemplary embodiments for installing the device in accordancewith the invention are presented as examples in the following.

FIG. 2 shows an electric motor 10 inserted in a motor housing 42 as wellas a detailed view of the area of an isolating element 32 with aninserted electric motor. Accommodating DC motors in fan modules hastypically been accomplished until now by means of a separate plasticadapter or other additional plastic parts, which accommodate therequired isolating elements and the motor and thereby isolate the motortowards the motor housing. In the case of the device in accordance withthe invention for mounting an electric motor in a manner that isolatesvibrations, this type of additional adapter for accommodating the motoris no longer required in the motor housing.

The fan motor in accordance with the exemplary embodiment in FIG. 2 isheld between a motor flange plate 44 and the motor housing 42. Theisolating elements 32 that act as dampening elements are attached to theholding elements 26 that project radially from the motor, and theholding elements are a single-piece part of the yoke ring. Curvedreceptacle dishes for the isolating elements 32 can be formed in anadvantageous manner in the motor flange plate 44 or the motor housing 42thereby making assembly that is low in vibration possible. The assemblyof this type of fan motor is thereby simplified to an axial joiningprocess.

In the installation position of the electric motor, the isolatingelements 32, which are connected to the holding elements 26 of the polehousing 12 via the connecting means 40, end up lying horizontallybetween the surface of the pole housing 12, on the one hand, and theinner surface of the motor housing 42 or the inner surface of a flange44, on the other. In the process, the flange 44 closes the motor housing42 and in addition serves to fasten the overall system on the body of amotor vehicle for example.

By using the spherical isolating elements in combination with acorresponding coordination of the motor flange plate 44 or the motorhousing 42, it is possible to influence the elastic properties of theisolating elements 32 in the mounting in a targeted manner in order tothereby achieve, if necessary, a different dampening behavior in theradial, axial or tangential direction.

FIG. 3 shows an alternative exemplary embodiment of a fan with anisolating device in accordance with the invention. The overviewrepresentation in FIG. 3 a shows a complete fan 11 with an electricmotor installed in a motor housing 42. The shaft 24 of the electricmotor is guided out of the motor housing and permanently connected to afan wheel 56.

The motor housing 42 of the exemplary embodiment in accordance with FIG.3 is comprised of a pot-shaped lower part 52 of the motor housing and anannular upper part 54 of the motor housing that is connected to thelower part. The motor flange 44 is arranged as a single piece on thelower part 52 of the motor housing.

FIG. 3 b shows a detailed view of the arrangement of an isolating devicein accordance with the invention in an exemplary embodiment according toFIG. 3. In this case, the isolating element 32 sits completely in themotor housing 42 and comes to bear against the pole housing 12 of theelectric motor 10 as well as against the lower part 52 of the motorhousing and the upper part 54 of the motor housing. Via a correspondingvariation of the distance d between the lower part 52 of the motorhousing and the upper part 54 of the motor housing, the press-inpressure on the isolating elements 32 can be modified. In this way, itis possible to realize different degrees of isolation for the isolatingdevice in accordance with the invention. The distance d can be varied,e.g., by the ring 54 that forms the upper part of the motor housingbeing screwed on the lower part 52 of the motor housing a differentdistance. Of course, other fastening methods between the upper and lowerparts of the motor housing 42 are also possible.

FIG. 4 shows another exemplary embodiment of the drive unit of a fan.The fan wheel has been detached in this depiction. The overviewrepresentation in FIG. 4 a shows an electric motor 10 installed in amotor housing. The motor housing 42 of the exemplary embodiment inaccordance with FIG. 4 is comprised of a pot-shaped lower part 58 of themotor housing, which is closed via a housing flange 60 in the directionof the fan wheel (not shown). In this embodiment, the isolating elements32 end up lying horizontally on one side in the motor flange. Only oneapplication surface 62 with the actual motor housing is yielded.

For explanatory purposes, FIG. 4 b shows a detailed view of theisolating device in accordance with the invention as per the exemplaryembodiment in FIG. 4.

FIG. 5 shows a double-layer pole housing 12 with correspondinglyoriented holding elements 26. The layers of the pole housing are eachformed in this case of a rolled steel sheet strip 28 or 30. The steelsheet strip 28 forms the inner pole ring and the steel sheet strip 30forms the outer pole ring. The holding elements 26 of the exemplaryembodiment according to FIG. 5 are worked out of the steel sheet strip30 as a single piece and therefore attached to the surface of the polehousing 12 and in doing so essentially oriented radial to the polehousing. Indentations 34, which serve to fix the connecting bridges 40,are provided in the holding elements 26 to accommodate the isolatingelements 32. In this exemplary embodiment, the holding elementsessentially have a tangential orientation to the surface of the polehousing, i.e., the longitudinal side runs perpendicular to the axis ofthe pole housing. Also visible in FIG. 5 is an opening 46 in the form ofan elongated hole in the inner steel sheet strip 28 of the double-layerpole housing. A tool can grip through these openings 46, each of whichis allocated to a holding element 26, during the manufacturing method inaccordance with the invention for an electric motor in order to orientthe holding elements 26, which are embodied as a single piece in theouter steel sheet strip 30 of the pole ring 14 and originally are stillflatly adjacent in this strip.

FIG. 6 shows a pole housing 12 in accordance with the exemplaryembodiment in FIG. 5 with holding elements 26 that are not yet oriented.It is evident in this depiction that the holding elements can be stampedfor example only in the outer pole ring 30. Depending upon the use ofthe electric motor, the holding elements can then either be oriented inanother manufacturing step or also remain flat in the pole ring.

It is also possible in principle to embody the pole housing 12 only as asingle layer, i.e., with just one pole ring 30. The losses in magneticflow of the one pole ring due to the then interrupted surface structureof the pole housing represent a certain disadvantage of this embodiment.However, on the other hand, this simplified embodiment results inclearly reduced expenditures for materials, manufacturing and assembly,which must be weighed against the disadvantages.

FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 depict an alternative exemplary embodiment of a polehousing of the device in accordance with the invention. The holdingelements 27 of the exemplary embodiment as per FIGS. 7 and 8 are alsooriented essentially in a radial direction of the pole housing 12, butthey have an axial orientation, i.e., an orientation parallel to theaxis of the pole housing and thus parallel to the motor shaft. Theholding elements 27 of the exemplary embodiment in accordance with FIGS.7 and 8 are arranged respectively in pairs such that they are arrangedessentially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the pole housing. Theisolating elements, in this case particularly isolating elements 33, arethen placed on the holding element pairs and fixed. Fixation can beaccomplished, e.g., via bonding, clamping or also other fasteningmethods known to the person skilled in the art. Other alignments of theholding element pairs 27 and thus the isolating elements are alsopossible in other embodiments. The presence of holding means 27 embodiedin pairs makes it possible to also fasten larger isolating elements tothe pole housing 12, such as the depicted elements 33 for example.

In principle, however, it also possible to distribute the holdingelements over the circumference of the pole housing not in pairs, but touse just a plurality of individual holding elements.

FIG. 8 shows a schematic representation of the pole housing in FIG. 7with mounted isolating elements 33. The isolating elements 33 have arounded outer surface with which they come to bear on the inner side ofa corresponding receptacle housing or motor housing when the electricmotor is installed. Because of the rounded surface shape of theisolating elements 33, a certain rolling in the circumferentialdirection of the pole housing is possible. A detailed representation ofthese isolating elements can be found in FIG. 12.

In the case of this type of isolation according to the exemplaryembodiment in FIG. 7 or 8, we are more likely dealing with a more rigidisolation in the axial direction, however, whose flexibility isessentially determined only by the elasticity of the material used forthe isolating elements.

FIG. 9 shows a section through a pole housing with an arrangement of theholding element in accordance with FIG. 7 in which, however, only asingle-layer structure of the pole housing 12 is used. The elasticisolating elements 33 are placed on the holding elements 27 or, e.g.,also bonded with them. FIG. 9 also shows the openings 70 in the surfaceof the pole housing, which are produced by the fact that the polehousing in this exemplary embodiment is only structured to be a singlelayer and therefore only has one steel sheet strip 30 that forms thepole ring. The corresponding tools can be inserted through theseopenings in the manner already described in order to orient the holdingelements 27.

In addition to the shapes of the isolating elements depicted in FIG. 2and FIG. 8, naturally other shapes, particularly roll bodies such asroll-like or cylindrical elements for example, are also possible anduseable. FIGS. 10, 11 and 12 show several examples of possible shapes ofthe isolating elements. Of course, other shapes are possible for theisolating elements without abandoning the underlying inventive idea.

FIG. 10 shows a schematic view of the isolating elements 32. This typeof isolating element is comprised in the described manner of twoessentially spherical partial bodies 36 and 38 and a bridge 40connecting these partial bodies. The connecting bridge in this case canhave, e.g., a square or even a round cross section. The isolatingelement 32 is advantageously manufactured as a single piece of anelastic plastic.

As another example of an isolating body, FIG. 11 shows an exemplaryembodiment of isolating elements that has been modified as compared withthe exemplary embodiment in FIG. 10. The isolating elements 31 inaccordance with the exemplary embodiment in FIG. 11 are comprised of tworoll-shaped partial bodies 64 and 66, which are permanently connected toeach other via a one-piece connecting bridge 68.

The isolating elements 31 or 32 are pressed into the correspondingrecesses 34 of the holding elements 26 in the area of their connectingbridge. In doing so, the respective connecting bridge of the isolatingelements serves advantageously also as an assembly aid since thespherical bodies 36 and 38 must not be mounted individually for example.

FIG. 12 shows the isolating element 33 in both a longitudinal sectionand a cross section. With their open side 35, the isolating elements areplaced on the corresponding holding elements, as shown in FIG. 8 forexample. A limited rolling of the holding element 33 on the inner wallof the receptacle housing serving as a motor housing is possible withthe rolled surface 37 so that a dampening of the vibrations of theelectric motor can be achieved.

In contrast to known prior art isolating devices, the device inaccordance with the invention does not require an additional adapterhousing into which the electric motor is inserted and which typicallyfeatures corresponding receptacles for isolating elements. Thissignifies a distinct simplification of assembly since an additionalsliding on or mounting of such an adapter is eliminated.

In addition, bending of the receptacle brackets serving as holdingelements 26 or 27 on the finished mounted motor is possible from theoutside and even afterwards. As a result, the shaping accuracy of thepole housing 12 is retained and a motor can, e.g., be delivered to acustomer also as a separate end product without already oriented holdingelements.

The device in accordance with the invention is not limited to theexemplary embodiments depicted in the figures and in the description. Onthe contrary, these exemplary embodiments only serve to illustrate theidea underlying the invention.

The device in accordance with the invention for mounting an electricmotor in a manner that isolates vibrations is not limited to the use fora fan motor. On the contrary, all electric motors for which isolation ina manner that dampens vibrations is desired can be embodied inaccordance with the invention.

In particular, the device in accordance with the invention is notlimited to the number and shape of isolating elements depicted in theexemplary embodiments. Isolating elements of any shape and number can beused in an advantageous manner in the device in accordance with theinvention. The design of the isolating elements in this connection shallbe configured in such a way that the elastic properties of the dampeningelements in the mounting can be influenced in a targeted manner forradial, axial and tangential fixation in order to achieve optimaldampening behavior and therefore the desired reduction in noise.

1. Device for mounting an electric fan motor (10) in a manner thatisolates vibrations, wherein the electric motor (10) features at leastone pole housing (12) serving as a magnetic yoke ring, with means forfastening (26, 27) elastic isolating elements (31, 32, 33),characterized in that the means for fastening (26, 27) the isolatingelements (31, 32, 33) include a holding bracket (26, 27) formed from andas a single piece with a wall of at least one pole ring (14) of the polehousing (12), characterized in that the wall of the at least one polering (14) of the pole housing (12) defines an opening adjacent to theholding bracket (26, 27), and that the isolating element (31, 32, 33)includes a portion positionable in the opening.
 2. Device according toclaim 1, characterized in that the pole housing (12) is constructed tobe a single layer.
 3. Device according to claim 2, characterized in thatthe means for fastening (26, 27) the isolating elements (31, 32, 33)include holding brackets (26, 27).
 4. Device according to claim 1,characterized in that the pole housing (12) is constructed to bemulti-layer.
 5. Device according to claim 4, characterized in that themeans for fastening (26, 27) the isolating elements (31, 32, 33) includeholding brackets (26, 27).
 6. Device according to claim 4, characterizedin that the wall of the at least one pole ring (14) provides an outerlayer of the pole housing (12) and that an inner layer of the polehousing (12) includes a second wall defining another opening (46)associated with the holding bracket (26, 27).
 7. Device according toclaim 4, characterized in that the pole housing (12) is formed as adouble rolled cylinder.
 8. Device according to claim 7, characterized inthat the means for fastening (26, 27) the isolating elements (31, 32,33) include holding brackets (26, 27).
 9. Device according to claim 7,characterized in that the double rolled cylinder includes an outer sheet(30) providing the wall of the at least one pole ring (14) and an innersheet (32) defining another opening (46) associated with the holdingbracket (26, 27).
 10. Device according to claim 1, characterized in thatthe means for fastening (26, 27) the isolating elements (31, 32, 33)include a plurality of holding brackets (26, 27).
 11. Device accordingto claim 10, characterized in that the holding brackets (26, 27) areoriented radial to the pole housing (12).
 12. Device according to claim10, characterized in that the holding brackets are arranged in pairs.13. Device according to claim 12, characterized in that the holdingbrackets (27) are oriented axial to the pole housing (12).
 14. Deviceaccording to claim 12, characterized in that the holding brackets (26)are oriented tangential to the pole housing (12).
 15. Device accordingto claim 1, characterized in that the isolating elements (31, 32, 33)include roll bodies.
 16. Device according to claim 15, characterized inthat the isolating elements (31, 32) are dumbbell-shaped.
 17. Deviceaccording to claim 1, characterized in that the holding bracket (26) hasan open outer end having an end surface, an indentation (34) beingdefined in the outer end and extending from the outer surface, anisolating element (31, 32) including a portion received in theindentation (34).